


Song of the Sky

by Hexadecimalrebooted



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Dragons, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, M/M, not ninjas, some light gore
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-20
Updated: 2020-09-20
Packaged: 2021-03-05 00:06:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 13,580
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25115107
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hexadecimalrebooted/pseuds/Hexadecimalrebooted
Summary: Iruka is a dragoon. A person meant to serve the Queen, the great dragon that rules over his mountain home. When they come of age, dragoons are supposed to chosen by a draconis, a member of the flight who live under the Queen's protection. Iruka is over twenty and none of the draconis want anything to do with him. Alone and unchosen, Iruka lives his life at the fringes of a world he should be a part of.
Relationships: Hatake Kakashi/Umino Iruka
Comments: 35
Kudos: 258
Collections: Naruto Fantasy Week 2020





	1. Under the Mountain

**Author's Note:**

> posted for the Knights, Dragons and Druids prompt. 
> 
> I’m playing fast and loose with dragon sizing. And most generally accepted dragon things.

An amphipthere screamed in the distance pulling Iruka completely out of slumber. The hum of birdsong had stopped. Iruka sat up and rolled his head from side to side. He let out a satisfied groan at the series of pops that followed. There was a horrible squawk. The amphipthere had found its breakfast. It was quiet only for a little while until the birds began singing again. Iruka could hear the chatter of the aviary wyverns. Iruka’s room was high up in the mountain. A massive undertaking of stairs to get to without a dragon. But Iruka loved the sight of the valley below. Watching the wyverns and the amphipthere fly from above. It was as close to the clouds as Iruka was likely to get.

Today was wyvern day. A weekly test of Iruka’s patience. The dragons hissed or snubbed him. Turning their backs on him and refusing to acknowledge him no matter how he tried to coax them. He felt invisible blundering around in their dens in the mountainside. The amphiptheres screamed and screeched at him. Often they flew as far from him as they could, tucking themselves into the highest places in their barns. The drakes were skittish and prefered that Iruka didn’t touch them. If he did, they’d often buck and snap or even bolt from their pens. But the wyverns were vicious. They would take flight in the aviary and dive bond his head as he cleaned. They would snatch at his hair and claw at his face if he let them get close enough. Never mind that he was there to clean their mess and feed them. They hated him and the more time went on, the more the feeling was mutual.

Wyvern day was always the day that Iruka thought about throwing in the towel. It was tempting to give up on the idea that he belonged in the mountain. Surrender to the fact that he wasn’t a dragoon like his parents before. That the sky was not his domain. That he was meant for something else. Something grounded. Iruka sighed loud and long in his lonely room.

Iruka went through his morning ablutions and dressed quickly. The sooner he began, the sooner he could finish. He put his hair up in a ponytail and hurried down the stairs. It was a fifteen-minute scramble down the stairs to get to the aviary. Iruka passed a few people on the stairs, a rarity since most people that lived in the upper levels were there to be with their dragons and rarely stooped to walking down the stairs when they could fly down to the courtyard. He was ignored until he hit the main hall in the mountain. There were people moving about the room in a display of organized chaos. The kitchen staff were putting out trays of bread and hard cheese. A platoon of drake riders, dressed in dusty, brown leathers, was in the midst of a rowdy discussion at one of the long tables that filled the dining hall. Iruka tried to scurry through the hall without being noticed. But his luck didn’t hold.

“Hey, Iruka,” Mizuki approached with a swagger in his step.

Iruka watched him with trepidation. They had been friends before Mizuki had been chosen. Before Iruka had been left behind. As soon as the faded red drake with the scarred cheek had chosen him, Mizuki had abandoned Iruka. He had been keen to separate himself from Iruka’s reputation. No one wanted to be lumped together with an unwanted.

“Hello, Mizuki-kun,” Iruka replied. He tried to keep his voice pleasant. As much as he wanted to lash out, it wouldn’t be worth it. Not with Mizuki’s entire platoon watching them. Chosen stuck by chosen.

“Where are you off to in such a hurry?” Mizuki cocked his hip to the side. He was smiling, soft and sultry at Iruka. He looked handsome in the brown leather pants and jackets that the drake riders wore. The vibrant red of the silk shirt he wore made his skin look like fresh cream, even under the faint layer of dust from working patrol overnight.

“I have to help at the aviary. I can’t be late,” Iruka said. He was a desperate effort to escape whatever conversation Mizuki was trying to pull him into.

“You have time,” Mizuki said. He reached out and snagged Iruka by the elbow. He leaned into Iruka’s space, his face too close for Iruka to avoid looking at.

“Mizuki-kun.” A booming voice broke into the silent panic that was starting to build in Iruka.

“Gai-san,” Mizuki said as he stepped out of Iruka’s personal space.

He sounded deferential but Iruka knew Mizuki loathed the other man. Gai was boisterous and loud. Despite the general uniform for drake riders being brown, Gai wore shiny green leathers and pale boots. Gai was charming and friendly and nothing was beneath his notice and no one was unworthy of his help. Iruka thought he was an ideal dragoon although not everyone shared his opinion. Other people often complained that Gai was too ostentatious. He wore emerald green leathers making a small patch of colour in the swath of brown. Iruka was sure they were enchanted to be such a vibrant colour and so very eye-catching. Some complained Gai wasn’t serious enough or too comical in manner or appearance. Mizuki had often complained that the man was stupid and he resented Gai for whatever reason. Gai was also the best drake rider in a thousand flights. Iruka didn’t doubt jealousy coloured Mizuki’s opinion. Green suited Mizuki more than Gai. Mizuki bowed and Gai let out a hearty laugh. He walked over and thumped Mizuki hard enough on the back that Iruka heard it.

“I heard you and your drake caught the trail of some bandits.”

Gai was grinning, his bright white teeth glinting in the light of the hall. Iruka was sure there was enchantment involved. He wasn’t sure how. Maybe a glamour worked into the material of his coat? There was a talented spell weaver in the castle town. Iruka had met her once. A broad and cheerful woman that worked alongside a tailor and sewed spells into clothing. A process that was far more effective than simple enchantment. Iruka had found the whole process fascinating. Gai’s clothes had to be spell woven.

“Yes, Gai-san. We found what was left of a camp a league away from the village. We tracked them as far as we could but the captain wanted to turn back when we hit the edge of the flight's territory.”

It was obvious by the way Mizuki spoke that he didn’t agree with his captain’s decision. But he had used “we” rather than “I”. Iruka was surprised. It was rare that Mizuki didn’t want attention and notoriety. Iruka began edging away from the conversation.

“It’s probably for the best.”

Iruka jumped. He hadn’t realized that someone was so close. Iruka turned to see Hatake Kakashi behind him. How the man had snuck up on him, Iruka wasn’t sure. Only that he had been perfectly silent. Kakashi didn't bother to give Iruka a passing glance. Iruka felt himself shrink a little.

“I’ll lead some dragons to search by air today. Make sure the bandits left the area. We don’t want them harassing the farmers.”

Kakashi watched Mizuki in an assessing way. Iruka could tell how uncomfortable Mizuki was under the eyes of two of the most powerful dragoons in the mountain.

“Yes sir,” Mizuki said. He saluted sharply.

“Let’s go, Gai,” Kakashi said. He nodded to Mizuki before striding through the dining area without a backward glance.

“How cool, my eternal rival!” Gai called. “Excuse me, Mizuki-kun, Iruka-sensei.”

Iruka startled at being acknowledged. That Gai knew who he was, was surprising and that he thought to tag on the sensei. Most dragoons didn’t. Teaching younglings wasn’t what dragoons were meant for. Most thought Iruka eccentric for doing it. Or thought he was clinging to usefulness. “I must follow my rival and see how I might help him in his endeavour to serve the flight.”

Iruka and Mizuki bowed as Gai trotted after Kakashi.

“Iruk-”

“I’m sorry, Mizuki,” Iruka said quickly. “I need to get going. I’ll be late at this rate.”

Iruka gave a quick bow and bolted for the door to the side stairs. Iruka made it halfway up the stairs before he stopped. He had seen Kakashi. Up close. He had been close enough to touch. Iruka curled his hands into fists. The man had walked right by him as if he didn’t exist. But Gai had seen him. Gai remembered who he was. Had even been pleasant.

And Mizuki, Mizuki had been flirting. Sort of. Iruka was a fool to cling to his little crush. He knew that. He wasn’t someone that Hatake Kakashi would see, let alone acknowledge. He should go back down the stairs. Apologize to Mizuki for running off without hearing him out. And put his stupid little crush away.

Iruka walked back down the stairs. He would say he was sorry, then try to meet up with Mizuki later. They could talk then. Or maybe more. The scuffing or several sets of feet approached the stairs. Iruka pressed himself into the cool stone of the wall.

“What were you trying to do with that unchosen just now?” A sly voice asked. Iruka didn’t recognize the voice but he didn’t know many of the drake riders. “Does Mizuki-kun feel bad for the little unchosen?”

“Hardly. I was going to offer him something to be happy about.”

There was a leer in his voice that made it clear what he meant. The platoon broke out in laughter.

Iruka closed his eyes. He should have known. Mizuki wouldn’t reach out to him with kindness. He had made it clear before. Iruka was an inconvenience. An embarrassment. A pity tumble would be all that Iruka was worth. Iruka crushed down the hurt and anger, doing his best not to cry.

Iruka fled up the stairs.

*

“I could ride an amphipthere!” Naruto declared.

Iruka sighed. Feeding the wyverns had been a disaster. He had been scratched and clawed. He was bleeding enough he had gone to see the healers. Healing sessions always made him feel fatigued after. Even when his injuries had been superficial. Iruka fought back a yawn and rubbed at his forehead.

“Amphipthere aren’t for riding, idiot!” Sakura screeched.

The children were restless and argumentative. In the short afternoon that he had his class: he had broken up two fights, settled no less than three arguments, found Naruto planting some strange bugs in Ino’s desk, caught Choji eating again and woken Shikamaru three times. Iruka’s patience was worn thin.

“Sakura! No name-calling,” Iruka barked.

Sakura huffed and crossed her arms over her chest. Her face was screwed up in a stubborn scowl.

“But she is right, Naruto,” Sakura preened but as soon as she noticed Iruka watching her she went back to pouting. “Although they can carry a small person and are strong for their size, amphipthere aren’t meant to be ridden. Carrying a person is meant for larger draconis like drakes or dragons. Wyvern, amphipthere and fae dragons are small by draconis standards. Although they can carry tremendous loads, riding them isn’t recommended,” Iruka explained.

“Then I want a dragon!” Naruto declared. “I want to fly!”

The boy had leapt from his seat and was gesticulating dramatically.

“Naruto!” Iruka barked. The boy froze. “In your seat.”

Naruto dropped into his seat with a pout. The scolding had the other kids whispering and giggling.

“Since all of you seem so interested in talking out of turn and ignoring your lessons today, we’re going to have a quiz,” Iruka said. Groans and complaints met the declaration.

“This is all Naruto’s fault,” Ino snipped. “He should be the one that has to write a test.”

Naruto shrunk in his chair as the other children began to mutter their agreement.

“And did you raise your hand to point that out?” Iruka asked.

The air in the classroom changed dramatically. The children became very subdued. They knew that Iruka’s last shred of patience was gone and they would pay for it.

“No. All of you contributed. You will all be penalized the same. I will give you five verbal questions. You will write down your answers on your length of parchment. There will be no talking to each other. If you have a question you will raise your hand and speak only to me. Anyone that doesn’t answer all five questions correctly will be given extra work every day for the rest of the week. Are we clear?”

There was a chorus of dull agreement.

Iruka ran through the five questions one at a time, giving the children an opportunity to scribble down answers before he went to the next. It kept the children quiet for the last twenty minutes of the day. Fear of extra work keeping them silent. Once they were done with their tests he dismissed them with pointed looks. Most trudged out of the room in sulky silence.

Iruka ran a hand down his face. He shouldn’t have been so snappish with them. He was angry but not at them. Iruka sighed and leaned forward to rest his head on his desk. He closed his eyes and tried not to feel too guilty.

“Iruka-sensei?”

Iruka snapped up, surprised to see Naruto standing by his chair.

“Yes, Naruto?” Iruka asked. Naruto was a handful on the best of days but he was also one of the sweetest children in his class. He might have even been Iruka’s favourite. A terrible thing for a teacher to have. Somehow, Iruka had a hard time feeling guilty about it.

“If I get bad grades, does that mean I won’t be chosen?” The boy asked quietly. He was twisting the hem of his shirt in his hands. His face was scrunched with worry

“Grades decide _when_ you are presented to the flight to be chosen, not if,” Iruka said.

“Really?” Naruto asked. His eyes were watery.

Iruka tried not to narrow his eyes in irritation. One of the other kids had put the idea quite firmly into Naruto’s head. Iruka would likely need to reassure him a few times before he would take Iruka at his word. Iruka would need to keep a careful eye out for bullying.

“Yes, really,” Iruka said with a smile. “The Queen acknowledged you, remember? She sees you as part of her flight. One of her draconis will pick you in time.”

Iruka wondered who he was trying to reassure as he watched Naruto scrubbed at his face. Iruka’s heart ached. He understood Naruto’s fears better than anyone.

“Now how about we go down for some food, hmmm? We can get some good stew from Teuchi,” Iruka said as he stood.

“Yeah!” Naruto crowed, any distress he might have felt, forgotten at the prospect of food. The boy bounced over to the door, all energetic enthusiasm. “Can we get sweet bread too?”

“If you’d like.”

Naruto ran in a circle pumping both fists in the air before stopping next to the door. The boy almost vibrated in place.

“Come on, Iruka-sensei! Aren’t you hungry?”

Iruka only laughed and followed Naruto out the door. He would grade the tests tomorrow.

*

Iruka smiled as he watched Naruto eat. The boy was enthusiastic if nothing else. He chattered about random subjects, sometimes trying to speak, eat and gesture all at once. Iruka had finally managed to tame Naruto enough that he would eat and speak separately. It had only taken one instance of choking to drive the idea home.

“I really want to ride a titan,” Naruto confided.

“I think every dragoon to ever live has wanted that same thing,” Iruka replied with a laugh. “Even me.”

“Really? You wanted to ride a titan too?” Naruto looked at him eagerly.

“Of course,” Iruka grinned. “They’re massive and powerful. They only chose the absolute strongest to be their riders. You have stew all over your face. Hold still.”

Naruto fussed for a few seconds but then submitted to Iruka’s attention and allowed his face to be cleaned.

“But what kind of titan did you want? I want one of the great reds. Since there aren’t orange dragons.”

“Who told you there are no orange dragons?” Iruka asked.

“Everybody says so.”

Naruto shrugged the statement. Iruka felt his irritation mounting. Someone was going out of their way to grind down Naruto’s dreams. There was definitely bullying happening and Iruka had missed it. A wave of guilt smothered Iruka’s anger.

“Of course there are,” Iruka said. Naruto gave Iruka a side glance and stuffed a few more spoonfuls of stew into his mouth. “Why do you think they call the Nine-tail a fox?”

“What?” Naruto squawked, spraying stew out of his mouth.

Iruka shot Naruto a warning glance. The boy blushed and mumbled an apology. Iruka huffed as he wiped the boy’s mouth and front down with a cloth.

“The Nine-tail is red,” Naruto said with all the authority of a nine-year-old.

“He’s classified as a red, yes,” Iruka agreed. “But all the images of him, he’s painted like a fox. An orange head, body and tails with a white underbelly, and dark feet. People always say foxes are red but to me they’ve always looked orange.”

“Me too! I think so too, Iruka-sensei.”

Naruto stared at him excitedly.

“I’m gonna ride the Nine-tail one day,” Naruto declared.

“Not if you don’t finish your stew,” Iruka chided. “Eat up. If you’re going to be a titan rider you need your strength.”

Naruto grinned and finished his bowl off with gusto. He paused occasionally to pepper Iruka with questions about the Nine-tail. Iruka told him as much as he could, drawing on what he had read and the old stories his mother would tell him. Naruto soaked up every word, his eyes alight with happiness.

Once the boy had cleaned his third bowl. Naruto started picking at the honey bread Iruka had used as a bribe to get the boy to sit still. The conversation had meandered away from the Ninetail to about every other titan Iruka had ever heard of. Naruto grilled him relentlessly asking question after question about them. Iruka was concerned that he was going to run out of information before Naruto ran out of questions. The boy's enthusiasm was not showing any signs of waning.

“All right Naruto. It’s late. You need to go to bed,” Naruto said.

“But Iruka-sensei!” Naruto complained. “I have lots more questions and I wanna hear more stories.”

“I’m sorry Naruto, but it’s getting late and we both need to get our rest,” Iruka said.

Iruka knew Naruto had no parents and like him, had no family other than what the flight promised. Iruka hoped Naruto fared better in choosing than Iruka had. Iruka stood from the table and tugged Naruto with him. He smiled and thanked the younger woman that was collecting the dishes from the tables.

Iruka smothered a chuckle as Naruto began listing his complaints about being sent home to bed. Iruka bit his tongue and didn’t mention the homework that Naruto should be doing either. He had been a bit hard on all the children over the course of the day. He would make it up to them tomorrow.

“Naruto.”

The pair froze. Kakashi had appeared without Iruka noticing again. He was frustratingly good at that.

“Hi Kakashi." Naruto's voice was meek.

“You were supposed to go back to your room directly from class,” Kakashi said. He hadn’t even so much as glanced at Iruka. All of his focus was on the little boy at his side.

“But,” Naruto huffed, “Iruka-sensei invited me to supper. It would be rude to say no.”

“You already had other responsibilities to attend. Now, it’s time to go.”

“But I wanted to go with Iruka-sensei.” Naruto stomped his foot to emphasize his point.

“I’m sorry, Kakashi-san. If I had known I would have -”

"Naruto." Kakashi’s voice was firm. "It’s time you went to sleep."

Naruto scrunched up his face like he wanted to argue further. Iruka could tell Kakashi knew the warning signs too. Kakashi straightened up and tilted his head. Naruto let out a huff and slumped where he stood.

"Fine," Naruto said with no small amount of pouting.

Naruto took Kakashi’s outstretched hand and turned to follow him from the hall.

"Oh!" Naruto turned without letting go of Kakashi’s hand. "Bye, Iruka-sensei. See you tomorrow!"

Iruka gave the boy the brightest smile he could manage.

"See you tomorrow, Naruto."

Iruka watched them leave. Naruto chatted at Kakashi until they disappeared through the doorway. Kakashi hadn’t even acknowledged him. He might as well have been invisible. It was stupid to feel hurt. Iruka knew that. He was so far below Kakashi’s notice. He should have expected that sort of treatment. Why would Kakashi acknowledge someone like him? In a mountain full of dragoons with amazing draconis, why would Kakashi care about an unchosen adult? One who could only contribute to the flight with teaching and simple chores.

Iruka stood, staring at the door the pair had disappeared through, something like pain aching through him. He might have stayed there all night if someone hadn’t bumped into him, hard. Iruka had almost fallen to the floor.

“Sorry. I didn’t see you there.”

Iruka turned to face the drake rider that had knocked into him.

“Oh, it’s you,” the rider huffed and hurried past him.

The rest of his platoon, Mizuki included, dressed for another night patrol, walked by. No one looked in his direction. They parted around him like he was a statue or piece of immovable furniture. Not a single one of them touched him if they could avoid it. As if being unchosen was a disease. One that meant their draconis would abandon them if they so much as touched Iruka. Iruka tasted bile in the back of his throat.

Iruka bolted from the dining hall, running blindly away. His legs were starting to burn by the time Iruka became conscious of exactly where his mad dash had taken him. He had run down the stairs and into the caves. The caves were a series of tunnels under the mountain. They were filled with dragon dens and dragon hoards.

“Hello?” Iruka said.

A few of the dragons poked their snouts out of their dens, their nostrils flaring before they snorted and disappeared. Iruka walked along the path that fed into the dens. Each one he peeked into he only saw backs with folded wings. Not a single dragon turned to acknowledge him.

Iruka closed his eyes to gather himself. He took a few ragged breaths, then started the trek to his room. The draconis chose the partner. Not the other way around. It didn’t matter how many times he went to the caves or helped in the barn. No dragon or drake wanted to carry him. No amount of working in the aviary would change the truth. No amphipthere or wyvern wanted to be in his care. He was unchosen. An unwanted. A dragoon in name only. And Iruka wasn’t sure how much longer that would be allowed. A sob shivered out of him. Iruka swallowed back its fellows. He wouldn’t cry in the stairwell. He wouldn't.

The journey back to his room was a blur of choked back sobs and smothered sniffles. He would be forced out eventually. The other dragoons didn’t want him around. He would be forced from the mountain and have nowhere to go. He could find work in the town proper but the idea made Iruka’s heartache. He was a dragoon. He was supposed to be chosen. He wanted to be chosen.

Iruka shut the door to his room and collapsed against it. He tried his best to stifle it. To push it down but it came bubbling up. He wept. Long, loud, shuddering sobs that made his chest and throat ache. Tears and snot made a mess of his face. Iruka did the best he could to wipe his face with his hands and shirt. After what felt like hours, the tears finally stopped. Exhausted and so empty no more tears could come, Iruka cleaned himself up and went to bed.


	2. The Fallen Lady

Iruka woke in a cold sweat to silence. The afternoon sun was high in the sky. And other than the howl of the wind, the mountain was quiet. There was no birdsong, no chittering of amphipthere, no snipping of wyverns. Iruka listened hard. There was nothing. He couldn’t even hear the sounds of the lower levels. Sometimes things would quiet down when the Queen stretched her wings. The other draconis intimidated by her. This was different. And then Iruka heard it. 

The cry was mournful. Pained. _Wounded_. The sound was low and long and Iruka could feel it in his chest even more so than he could hear it. Iruka had never heard a dragon make that noise. It was far too low for anything else he could think of. Even the Queen had never sounded so ominous and sad. 

The mountain was silent as if the whole flight was holding its breath. The sound came again, this time it was scared and angry. It made Iruka’s heartache. Iruka couldn’t stand it. He threw his clothes on as quickly as he could and ran from his room. He was gasping by the time he made it down the stairs. The dining hall was empty save a few kitchen staff that were cleaning down the tables. 

“Where is everyone?” Iruka asked. 

There were always dragoons around the hall. If a dragoon was anything, it was hungry. It was guaranteed to find someone there, food in hand. Iruka had never seen the room so empty.

“Out and investigating whatever has the flight so upset. I've never seen the draconis so agitated.” A pretty faced maid named Asuna said.

Iruka nodded his understanding. He turned to leave.

“Wait!” Asuna called. “Eat this while you go.” 

She shoved a loaf of bread into his hands. Iruka took it gratefully and bit off little chunks as he took to the stairs that lead to the stabling pits where they kept the drakes. Nearly all the drakes were gone. Only a few were left. They were either too young or too injured to be mounted. There wasn’t a single rider in the pits. That terrible sound came again, bouncing around the stone walls of the pits and making Iruka’s head ache. The drakes left behind snarled and shook their heads. Iruka whined himself and rubbed his temples. He shoved the last of the bread in his mouth and took off running. 

He went down several more flights of stairs to the castle proper where he could find the horses. The mountain housed the draconis and their dragoons. The castle and its surrounding town held the civilians. Anyone from politicians to tradesmen, as well as retired dragoons. Iruka weaved his way through the building, keeping to the stairways favoured by the staff. He stumbled out into the courtyard and bound towards the stables. 

Every castle kept a horse stable. And every dragoon knew how to ride. Horses weren’t so fussy as drakes but they could be just as ornery. Luckily, or unluckily depending on how Iruka chose to see it on any given day, horses didn’t seem to loathe him the way that most draconis did. 

“Morning Iruka. You seem in a tizzy,” Yuna called. She was brushing down an old draft horse, the one they used to plough the fields that stretched outside the castle.

“I need- “ Iruka gasped. He braced his hands on his legs as he panted “A horse.”

The cry came again, terrible and sad. The horse Yuna had been brushing whinnied and shook her head. 

“Easy, my girl,” Yuna crooned. “Going to check up on whatever has the flight fussing, are you?”

“I need to-to get somewhere.” Iruka wasn’t sure where, but he needed to go. He needed to figure out that noise. It needed help.

“I see,” Yuna paused and looked him over. Iruka knew he looked dishevelled. He had tossed his clothes on in a hurry and tied his hair up without brushing it out first. “Most of the horses are restless. Whatever is making the dragons fuss, the horses aren’t faring any better. Except for Usu. But she doesn’t have the sense that the gods gave a rock. She might be the best choice for a mount.” 

“Thank you,” Iruka said, almost ready to weep in relief. 

Usu or Usugurai was a particularly dumb horse. Iruka had ridden her before. She couldn’t be trusted not to wander off directly into a stream or walk into a wall or fence. She required a practised rider that was paying attention. Iruka was a better rider than most dragoons so it would be simple for him to manage her. Despite being dumb, Usu was by far the fastest horse in the stable. She liked to try to keep up with the drakes and would run herself ragged given half the chance. 

“I’ll help you saddle her up.”

Iruka did his best to help but found it was best to let Yuna finish her work. It wasn’t long before he was swinging up into the saddle, astride Usu. He stroked the horse's neck. 

“Don’t let her take off, as much as you might want to. Warm her up. I haven’t worked with her today. She’s still cold,” Yuna warned. 

“I won’t. I’ll take care of her,” Iruka promised. 

Iruka managed to contain Usu to a walk out of the small castle town and through the gates. He let her take to a trot for a long as he could bear it before letting her run. They took the main road towards the old forest. Usu had a wonderful gait and Iruka let himself fall into the rhythm of riding. The small trees and thickets whipped by until they gave way to the large, thick trees of the old forest. The trees were so big a dragon could perch on them without making them bend. The canopy grew so thick that it cast a deep shade over the forest floor. Usu slowed as they grew closer to sound. Even as dumb as the horse was, she seemed to know that there was something wrong. 

Iruka could hear dragoons calling to each other and the general noise of a flight in full battle action. He caught glimpses of dragons in the air through breaks in the forest's thick canopy. He blinked when he thought he caught sight of something larger. Iruka urged Usu forward. She pranced a little but took his guidance. They only rode for a few moments before Iruka could clearly see their path. Damaged trees littered the road, some small others, larger. Some of the green woods had been felled. Snapped above the halfway mark or knocked over completely. Iruka turned Usu to follow the path of destruction. What they found at the end of it was chaos.

It wasn’t only the flight's winged members up in the air as Iruka approached. A whole pod of skywhales were milling around in the air. The dragons, wyverns and amphipthere were swooping around the pod, trying to keep it from diving down at the drakes and their riders below. The drakes snarled and snapped up towards the skywhales, not getting close enough to land a blow but their agitation was plain to see. 

The sad and terrible sound came again and it set the draconis to fits. The drakes snarled at everything, even each other. The amphipthere shrieked and the wyvern chittered. The dragons let out barking calls to each other. None of the dragoons could seem to calm their draconis. The skywhales made the general din even worse by singing loud and long, their melody full of distress. 

The reason for all the fuss was prone on its side amidst downed trees. A female skywhale had fallen and was calling for help. The sort of songmagick that carried for miles and drove draconis near mad. She was calling to the sky for aid. Begging for it to save her. And the sky had come. It was buzzing around her in various shapes and sizes, draconis and skywhale alike, all desperate to help. Iruka hopped off Usu and gave her a slap on the rump to send her running home. The chaos was making her prance and Iruka didn’t feel comfortable tethering her with the scene unfolding around them. Usu was stupid, but she could find her way home well enough. Without thought, Iruka ran towards the skywhale on the ground. He dodged a few drake riders, some hollering at him as he weaved around their bulk, dodging tails and large bodies. Iruka made it half the distance before he almost slammed into a drake’s rear flank. Iruka came to a skidding stop and tried to dodge around but the drake kept getting in his path. 

“Get out of my way!” Iruka snapped, looking up at the rider. 

Mizuki glared down at him.

“What are you doing here, Unchosen?” Mizuki hissed. 

“Helping,” Iruka said. 

“And how do you plan to do that? On horseback or on foot?” Mizuki’s tone was snide. 

“If that’s the only way I can help, so be it. I’m not here for glory, unlike some,” Iruka replied and tried to dodge around Mizuki. The drake was too large and too fast for Iruka to move past. 

“Mizuki quit playing around and get to your station!” Aoba snapped. 

“Stay out of the way. Go home!”

Iruka raised his chin in response but said nothing.

“Die then,” Mizuki snarled. He pulled the reins on his drake and led the draconis away.

Iruka began making his way to the skywhale again. He was sweating and shaking through it all but he kept moving. A roar meant to terrorize sliced through the throng with savage efficiency. Iruka froze. The Queen had come. 

The Queen was an older white dragon with a pale violet stripe down her back. Her scales shone like pearls in the sunshine. She was large, almost a titan in her size but even she was smaller than the animal that was prone on its side. Skywhales were massive creatures that were similar in body shape and size to their water locked brethren. They had no wings and used skymagick to fly well above the world. Even dragoons that rode dragons rarely had the opportunity to get within a hundred meters of one. Iruka had never seen one other than at a distance that had made them seem small.

The skywhales called to each other. Their short swoops turning long and reaching lower, closer to the drakes and where the Queen flew. The Queen chuffed, a deep sound meant to ease the draconis. She circled in the air a few times, letting off warning growls to the skywhales when they flew too close to the draconis on the ground. Everything on the ground and in the air settled. The winged draconis made lazy circles in the air, weaving around each other and giving the skywhales a wide berth. The drakes trotted carefully around the downed skywhale, giving it a wide berth. All eyes were focused on the Queen. It was all the chance that Iruka needed. He broke out into a run. 

Iruka managed a good ten steps before any of the drakes realized what he was doing. A few riders scrambled to grab him but Iruka was more manoeuvrable than they were. A terrible, angry singing raised up just as Iruka was steps away from the skywhale. Iruka looked up to see the whales dropping down from the sky. They were going to dive at him at full speed. The massive bulk of them would kill him. Iruka did the only thing he could think of. He screamed as the Queen roared. 

“STOP!” 

Iruka braced for the skywhales to plough into him, crushing him into the dirt. Nothing happened. Iruka pried an eye open. He unfolded himself and stared. The pod of skywhales had stopped swarming and charging at him. Instead, they paused in the air above him, one was close enough that he could reach out and touch. It took up his whole vision. The flight was completely blotted out by them. No one moved. It felt like the entire sky was watching and waiting. 

“Thank you,” Iruka blurted out, unsure of what else to say to the crush of pale blue bodies hovering above him. Their breathing came in heavy puffs and pauses. Different from the draconis he was used to. Slowly they backed up and away. Iruka stared at them, mystified. 

The grounded female whined. A juvenile broke away from the back of the pod and flew to Iruka. His head was so wide even if Iruka spread his arms he would be able to hold the animal's face in his hands. The young buck nudged him, forcing Iruka a step back. The Queen let out a warning growl. Iruka reached out and put his hand on the skywhale. The Queen fluttered her wings in the background. Iruka didn’t look away from the skywhale. It trilled mournfully, a sound Iruka could feel in his chest. 

“We’ll help her. I promise,” Iruka said. 

Iruka stroked the skywhale below his mouth, reaching low to scratch its chin. It snorted air from its blowhole, trilled, then took off back up into the air. The rest of the pod followed, they moved up in the sky, no longer hovering but still watchful. 

“Well done, little Oddling,” The Queen said, her voice as soft as she could manage. Her voice always had a strange cadence that Iruka found soothing. 

The Queen had given him the name Oddling when he had first been presented as a dragoon years ago. She was one of the few dragons that seemed to be able to not just tolerate him but interact with him. He had tried to ask her once, why the other draconis didn’t like him but she had never given him a clear answer. Only to tell him he smelled of the sky as any dragoon should. But also of danger. Iruka still didn’t understand what that meant but he held it close to his heart. The Queen said he was meant for the sky. Iruka had to trust in that. 

“We can help her, can’t we?” Iruka asked. He looked to the Queen’s rider, a woman named Tsunade who was also a powerful healing mage. She leapt down from the Queen’s back in a display of physical skill that always surprised Iruka a little. 

“If I can get close enough to her to take a proper look,” Tsunade looked him over. “You keep her from crushing me and I’ll check to see how badly she’s wounded.”

“Oh-” Iruka swallowed. “OK.”

Iruka inched towards the female’s head. She snorted air from her blowhole as Iruka approached. He made sure to be in her line of vision before he walked to stand in front of her eye.

“We’re- we-re going to look you over, and help you, OK?” Iruka asked. 

She let out a weak song that sounded sad. She panted where she lay. Iruka reached out and stroked her skin. She closed her eyes and sang to him. A pretty, trilling melody. Iruka smiled and felt a laugh bubbling up for a reason he couldn’t explain. Suddenly the feeling was ripped away by terror and pain. And Iruka understood. 

“It’s breach,” Iruka said. The whale’s trilling turned to a shriek that made it hard to breathe. 

“What?” Tsunade said. 

“The baby. That’s why she fell,” Iruka explained, “It’s not coming out right. Like when the horses are giving birth and the calf is facing the wrong way. Skywhales don’t lay eggs. They give birth. And the baby isn’t coming out.” 

Tsunade let out a string of inventive curses. 

“Genma, get the amphipthere. The ones we use to fight fires. Get them to grab their watering buckets. Have them fill them with water. We need as much as we can get. This will be messy. We also need cloths and lots of them. Shikaku, get the wyverns that carry supplies to the towers to do it. They’re the best trained for it.”

“Yes ma’am.” Both of the dragoons saluted and began shouting orders to their respective units.

“Kurenai. Head to the castle and get Yuna,” Tsunade said. “Gai, take the drakes and move them away from the female. There’s no sense in making them uneasy if we don’t have to. Make a loose perimeter.”

“But Tsunade-sama,” Kurenai began. 

It was strange to see Gai puff up to argue. Iruka watched the exchange, surprised at the almost scowl on Gai’s face. 

“Now! We’ll lose the calf if we don’t act quickly,” Tsunade snapped. 

“I’ll stay and guard Tsunade, Gai,” Kakashi offered. 

Iruka froze when he realised Kakashi was staring at him. They called him the dragoon of a thousand choosings. An exaggeration to be sure, even if the man had eight draconis in his care. It was strange to see him with them all at one time. A fat drake named Bull, that Kakashi often rode bareback. He another drake flanked Bull, this wall tall and slender, named Shiba. Urushi was his lone dragon, a pale brown with a white belly and black eye markings. A dainty looking pixie dragon perched on Urushi’s back. Biscuit might have been little but as he was a chattery type. He had once to Iruka that he smelled scary. Kakashi also had two wyverns, neither of whom Iruka had ever been close enough to speak to, let alone learn their names. Out of Kakashi’s two amphipthere, Iruka had only met one. Pakkun flitted around Kakashi’s head before landing on his shoulder and rustled his wings. He made a humphing noise when he caught sight of Iruka. Kakashi reached up to stroke its belly. 

“What flight would attack us right now?” Tsunade snapped. She gestured angrily to the pod of whales circling in the sky. “There isn’t a flight on the continent that would be willing to take on a pod of skywhales that size. Even if they had a titan it would be risky with our flight buzzing around too.” 

“I think Gai is more concerned about assassination than attack,” Kakashi replied. 

The female screamed, her whole body seizing. The thumping of her tail made the ground shake. The circling pod sang their distress. The noise shook Iruka’s chest. 

“Please, Tsunade-sama,” Iruka begged. He could admire Kakashi later. Iruka moved to the skywhale’s tailstock. At its narrowest point, he could put his arms around it. Barely. Iruka stroked her skin. The female was in so much pain. And she was so very afraid. “It’s OK sweet. We’re going to help you.”

The skywhale cried softly. A strange, pitchy melody filled with pain and fear. Iruka stroked her flank where he could, trying to avoid the blood that was beginning to pool by his feet. His knowledge of skywhale anatomy was built on old books he had read when he was young. He only vaguely knew where to look for her genital slit. The slit was open wide and covered in blood. Iruka could make out the shape of a dorsal fin but couldn’t see a tail. 

“Tsunade-sama, I can’t see a tail!” 

“By the First Titan get us that fucking water and the cloth! Now!” Tsunade barked.

“It’s coming, Tsunade-sama,” Shizune said as she dropped down from a battle-scarred dragon. 

“About time you caught up, Shizune,” Tsunade said. 

Shizune, Tsunade’s second in command was a quiet woman with a rare fae dragon named Tonton. The dragon’s snout was pushed in, giving her a vicious underbite. She had a face more reminiscent of a boar than a dragon exacerbated by her sharp, long lower fangs. Tonton was the smallest dragon Iruka had ever seen, smaller even than Biscuit. She was also one of the few that seemed unbothered by his presence. As soon as she noticed Iruka, she flew over and landed on Iruka’s shoulder. She chirped then started chewing on his ponytail. 

“Hello, Tonton. I’m happy to see you too,” Iruka said. The skywhale let out a single note. Tonton chirped back. “Tsunade-sama, what do I do?”

Tsunade looked at him and smiled. 

“Keep doing what you are doing. She’s holding still better than I thought she would,” Tsunade said. 

Tsunade removed her leather armour, leaving her in a light cotton shirt. She tossed the armour to Shizune who caught it and tucked it under her arm. Tsunade grinned and grabbed the tops of her sleeves by her shoulders and pulled. The sleeves gave an awful tearing noise. She handed Iruka the two sleeves. 

“Hold onto those. I may need you to wipe my face down with them.”

Iruka took the material and hoped the castle seamstress didn’t catch him with them. She was a tyrant and he didn’t doubt the woman would take a switch to him, Tsunade and even the Queen if the mood struck her. 

“Tsunade-sama,” Shizune groaned, no doubt having the same terrorized thoughts as Iruka. Iruka however, wouldn’t be the one explaining what happened to Tsunade’s shirt to the seamstress. Shizune did not have an enviable job. 

“What?” Tsunade asked as if she didn’t very well know what Shizune was chiding her for. “I need them out of my way.”

Tonton chirped and leapt from Iruka’s shoulder to land on the whale. 

“Tonton!” Shizune hissed. The whale let out a faint little song.

“It’s OK,” Iruka said in realization. “She likes it. Tonton being here I mean.”

“Of course,” Tsunade huffed as she reached into the whale’s slit. Her face was scrunched in concentration. “Fae dragons eat skymites. When they were more common whole flocks would follow skywhale pods around, landing on them and eating the mites off them. The skywhales are intimidating enough that the faes don't fall prey to wyverns and amphipthere. The relationship helped them both.”

The whale groaned and squirmed. 

“Keep her still, Iruka!” Tsunade barked. 

“Easy now,” Iruka soothed. He stroked the skywhale gently by her eye. “We’re helping you. I promise. Aren’t we, Tsunade-sama?” 

“I’m trying to find the tail. If I can find it then we can try to turn the calf,” Tsunade explained. She grunted, reaching into the whale up to her shoulder. “Damn it.”

“What’s wrong?”

“We won’t be able to turn the calf by hand. We need to get the calf out. Soon. She’ll bleed to death and the calf will smother if we don’t,” Tsunade said. “Shizune, rope!”

Tsunade started barking orders but it was drowned out as the doe started to scream. The skywhales above thundered their distress. A large buck roared overhead. 

“We’re getting the baby out,” Iruka called, cupping his hands to his mouth to make sure his words carried. “Please, just give us some time to work.”

The buck hummed a low warning note but stayed where it was in the sky. 

“Tsunade-sama.”

Shizune had a few coils of rope in her hands. 

“Let’s help this lady,” Tsunade said.

The cry of a dragon wanting attention called out from above. A green with a pinkish belly landed in the dirt next to them. 

“Tsunade-sama,” Yuna called. She was sitting behind Kurenai. She stumbled off the dragon, not used to dismounting from something other than a horse.

“About time. The babe is breach and can’t be turned,” Tsunade said. She tossed the rope to Yuna. “Get to work. This is more your province than mine.”

Yuna nodded. The three women set to work. There was a flurry of activity and orders barked between them. Wyverns and amphipthere appeared with water and cloth. Drakes came close, their riders trying to keep their skittish behaviour under control. Iruka concentrated on soothing the skywhale. He chatted to her, telling her about the flight, cooed and reassured her through the worst of her pain. She screamed again and again. Long and loud and so pained that Iruka failed to hold back his own tears and cried with her. He stroked her skin and rubbed his face against her, apologizing for her pain and promising to help her. It felt like hours but it couldn’t have been that long before the three women crowed their triumph. A thin, screeching wail filled the air. 

The pod above sang a happy song. It had the same magick quality of the female’s distress but it was full of joy. The new mother joined in weakly from her prone position on her side. The calf, blinded by blood and the gore, let out shrieking chirps. The sound was so distressed it made Iruka’s hands shake. Without thought, Iruka raced over to the calf, grabbing a bucket of water as he went. 

“Careful Iruka, he might lash out,” Tsunade barked. 

As she spoke the calf snapped in his direction before letting out piercing chirps. 

“Enough,” Iruka said, firmly. “Now hold still. Once you’re cleaned up you can go to your mother.”

The chirps became less distressed and more plaintive. Iruka smiled and shushed the calf. It snorted from its blowhole but held still. Iruka poured the water over one eye, rinsing it before wiping the area clean. A large, blue eye stared back at him. A sharp chirp made Iruka’s ears ring. 

“Hello to you too,” Iruka said. Joy fluttered in his chest like a living thing. “I’ll clean the other one. Hold still.” 

Iruka walked around the calf to treat its other eye. The calf chirped happily and Iruka laughed. It was cute despite the fact that it was still rather large. Almost the size of drake even as an infant. The babe slapped its tail on the ground and chirped a strange scale. He stroked its side. The chirping and tail slapping continued for a few minutes. 

“Tsunade-sama,” Iruka said with growing concern, “Why isn’t-”

Iruka cut off his sentence as the female started singing. Iruka could feel it rather than hear it. It vibrated in the air around them. It pulsed and pushed like a living thing. It was draft and current. Cloud and lightning. It made Iruka feel like if he took a step, he could fly. It was the sky weaved into song. Iruka trembled where he stood, swallowing down the urge to join in that was growing inside him. And then the calf lifted from the ground. 

The calf tried to join in with its mother’s song with chirps and squeaks. It flew around Iruka clumsily, twisting in strange ways until he settled into a clear circular pattern. Iruka chuckled.

“Go see your mother,” Iruka chided. 

The calf gave loud barking chirps before flying to his mother. He circled over her head. A long, loud, resonating note filled the air and the mother began to lift from the ground. The female’s singing joined in like the sound of bell chimes. She moved towards Iruka and nudged him gently. 

“You’re welcome,” Iruka said. 

He reached out and stroked her skin. She sang and the air around him rippled. A breeze twisted around him and ruffled his clothes and hair. 

“Goodbye.”

Iruka found that the words pained him. He watched the calf and mother fly into the sky to join their pod. The other skywhales circled the newest member exchanging songs and greetings. Iruka until they were a blurring mass in the sky. He rubbed at his eyes to hide his tears. Iruka ignored the flurry of activity. Tsunade started barking orders. The drake riders began gathering the fallen trees. The other draconis started debating how to return to the mountain with them. He wouldn’t be needed for that. And he had to figure out how to get home. He was suddenly very tired. 

“How did you know?”

“What?” 

Iruka turned his attention away from the sky. Kakashi was looking at him intently. Iruka flushed. He wasn’t used to being the focus of attention. Especially Kakashi’s attention. The man walked by him with complete disinterest so often Iruka had started to feel invisible. He was handsome. Iruka could feel himself start to blush.

“How did you know she was grounded because of the baby?” 

“I-” Iruka paused. How had he known that the baby was the reason? The whale hadn’t started bleeding until after he had asked Tsunade for help. He had been sure, looking into the whale’s eyes had been enough. “I just knew.” 

Kakashi watched him critically. 

“I-I need to clean up,” Iruka said. 

He rushed past Kakashi and to one of the water barrels that was sitting amidst the other dragoons. He peeled off his shirt and tossed it aside. It was ruined anyway. He shoved his arms in as far as he could into the cool water. He scrubbed furiously at his hands and arms until he couldn’t see any more red.

“Here.”

Iruka jumped as Yuna appeared at his elbow. She handed him a damp cloth. He used it to wipe down his face and neck. 

“You did well,” Yuna said. “Letting you help me in the barn was time well spent I see.”

“Thank you.” 

“Oh, I brought you a spare shirt. May not fit quite right but at least it will cover you up. Unless of course you’re enjoying running about shirtless.” 

Iruka sputtered, snatching the shirt from Yuna’s hands, his face flaming. Yuna cackled in delight. Iruka struggled to get his damp arms into the slightly too small shirt. It was white and laces up at the front. He scowled at Yuna and worked at the ties on the shirt. It was too small and wouldn’t close completely. Iruka scowled at Yuna more. It set her off laughing again. 

“Look at you, flouncing about showing your chest like some sort of tart. Can’t even be bothered to wear a proper shirt,” Tsunade said.

“I didn’t know when I was leaving the castle that I was going to need a second shirt!” Iruka snapped then felt his face grow pale when he realized what he had done. 

Tsunade laughed loudly. She slapped him on the back hard enough that Iruka almost lost his footing and fell. The Queen Rider caught him before he face-planted in the dirt. 

“I’m teasing, boy. Don’t feel bad. Yuna is right, you did well. I wouldn’t have thought to check her for birthing. It isn’t the season for it. That will be the only calf born to that pod for months. As much as the draconis dislike the whales, I hate to see one die when I can help it. Katsuya hates it too, even if they don’t tend to like sharing the air with the sky cows.”

“Sky cows?” Iruka asked.

“That’s what the draconis call the skywhales. They think it’s insulting,” Tsunade said with a shrug. “Now I think it’s time we got you home. You looked a little worse for wear. Gai!”

Gai and his drake thundered into the clearing. Gai lept off his drake to land with a flourish in front of Tsunade.

“Yes, Tsunade-sama?”

The Queen rider huffed and rolled her eyes. “Take Iruka home. He’s tired and he has no draconis.”

“Of course, Tsunade-sama,” Gai said with a bow. “Eternal rival, I leave our Queen Rider in your care.”

Iruka glanced at Kakashi, the man gave a bored wave that completely contradicted the stare he was levelling at Iruka. Iruka blushed. He turned to face Gai.

“Thank you Gai-san,” Iruka said. 

“It is my honour to serve the flight. Ningame, come.”

Ningame was a large drake with deep green scales and a brownish belly. Several deep scars cut through his flank. Iruka was surprised that the drake hadn’t died from those injuries. Gai climbed back onto the drake with agility and grace that most drake riders did not possess. Iruka hesitated at the drake’s side. 

“I will help you up, sensei. You seem quite tired.” 

Gai offered his hand and Iruka took it. Ningame held perfectly still as Iruka mounted up. He didn’t hiss or fuss. Iruka counted his blessings and slipped in behind Gai. It was strange being astride an animal with no saddle. Gai made a small clicking noise and Ningame took off. Iruka clung to Gai, trying not to slide off the drake. It was much faster and had a different gait than a horse. Gai, to Iruka’s surprise, spoke very little and he found himself nodding off as they ran.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Skywhales are based on Livyatan https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Livyatan  
> Don’t they look like they would eat dragons given the chance? I think they would...


	3. Sky Rider

It was the singing that woke Iruka. A happy and playful melody pitched and warbled through the air. Iruka recognized the voice. He flung back his covers and hopped out of bed. He threw on a simple lace-up shirt and lace-up cloth pants. Iruka skidded out onto the balcony, a strip of leather that he used to tie back his hair hanging from his mouth. The skywhale calf circled above the balcony. It sang, chirped and laughed in the morning sunshine. Iruka waved at him before securing his hair back with a sloppy bun. The calf dove down, past the balcony and lower than Iruka could see. Iruka raced to the railing. He peered over the edge then reeled back, falling on his backside. The calf came flying back up so close Iruka could have reached out to touch his pale belly as it passed. Iruka laughed. 

“Good morning to you too,” Iruka called out. 

The calf spun and twisted in the air making nonsensical loops and chirped all the while. Iruka watched him, warm satisfaction pouring through him. Iruka clapped and laughed at the baby's antics. The calf kept coming closer with every loop. It was finally so close, Iruka gave in to temptation and ran his hand along the skywhale’s belly. The calf made a trilling noise and hovered over the balcony until Iruka rubbed his belly. Any time Iruka showed signs of slowing his attention the calf would chirp or puff in annoyance.

“How can someone who has only been alive for a week be so very spoiled already?” Iruka teased. 

A soothing melody filled the air as a large shape blotted out the sun. The female nudged her calf aside and pressed in close. Iruka ran his hand along what he could reach of her side. 

“Hello,” Iruka said, “I’m glad to see you’re feeling better.”

She sang to him. The tune was full of gratitude.

"You’re welcome," Iruka said. 

The female flew higher making lazy circles over the balcony. Her baby followed barrel rolling and making demanding puffing noises from his blowhole. The mother nudged the babe and the two sang to each other. Iruka moved to the railing and leaned on it as he watched. He felt lighter and happier than he had in days. Iruka could make out the rest of the pod in the sky high above the mountain. They milled around in a loose group twisting in lazy arcs and playing a game of chase together. They looked so small dancing in the sky. Like Iruka could hold them in his cupped hands. Iruka smiled to himself at the fanciful idea. 

The calf approached Iruka again chirping and clicking and demanding attention. Iruka laughed and ran back and forth near the edge of the balcony, the calf following along singing. Iruka was so wrapped up in the game he didn’t think twice about scrambling up the set of stairs that ran off the balcony. They had been there for years but had no bannister. They led up the cliff face to a flat area large enough for the calf to lay down and leave Iruka room to spare. 

When Iruka had first laid claim to his room he had fantasized about inviting people up to take in the view with him. Friends and maybe even a lover to look out over the mountain and the forest beyond. To see the great expanse of the sky, hear the sounds of the flight and the howl of the wind. It had never come to pass. No one had wanted the room in the first place. It was too high up and away from where the rest of the flight. And they wanted the room even less with him in it. 

Iruka sighed and let the wind wash over him. The past week had been long. The dragoons had given him an even wider berth than normal. They avoided him even more than they had before. Well, the adults had at least. The children, however, were fascinated by the story of Iruka and the skywhale. So much so, he had recounted it to his class five times in the span of a week. And what felt like another dozen times to Naruto. The boy sought him out several times a day to hear the tale. He would listen with rapt attention then pepper Iruka with questions about skywhales. Iruka couldn’t bring himself to discourage the boy’s ravenous interest. He had even taken to reading up on the animals in the flight’s expansive library. The effort to satiate Naruto’s curiosity had been well worth it. The boy was delighted by everything Iruka could tell him. It was the brightest part of Iruka’s day. 

A nudge to his back almost sent Iruka sprawling onto the hard rock of the cliff. The calf let out a few loud challenging barks. 

“I know, I know. Quit moping and pay attention to you,” Iruka said. The calf twisted to let Iruka rub his belly some more. “You are spoiled. And I’m afraid it’s all my fault. I’ll need to apologize to your mother.” 

The irritated chittering of a dragon made the calf twist around rapidly and jet up into the air. Iruka turned his attention to Kakashi, astride a disgruntled Urushi. They hovered a few feet from the cliff face, Urushi wing’s giving slow even beats. Kakashi clicked his tongue and his dragon, with a little grumbling, landed a few steps away from Iruka. 

An angry call like thunder ran out overhead and a large buck broke away from the pod to dive down towards them. 

“It’s OK,” Iruka called without thinking about why. “It’s fine. Urushi is just being cranky. There’s no reason for concern. He won’t hurt the baby.”

The calf was letting out strange barks again and puffs of air from his blowhole. Urushi chittered at him. The calf let out a noise that made Iruka’s head ring. 

“That’s enough. Both of you,” Iruka snapped. The calf slunk down to push at Iruka with his chin. Urushi snorted and pranced to his left. Kakashi snapped his fingers and the dragon immediately stilled.

“How did you come up here?” Kakashi asked as he dismounted. Iruka eyed him. Kakashi was focused on him in a way that made Iruka’s palms sweaty and his skin hot. 

“I- I used the stairs,” Iruka said as he scrubbed self consciously at the back of his head. He flushed when he realized how he was dressed and his hair was falling from a sloppily made bun. A gust of wind made Iruka shiver. He hadn’t noticed the chill in the air until Kakashi had joined him.

“You used those stairs?” Kakashi jerked his chin towards the stairs in question, his voice judgemental. 

“Why not?” Iruka asked, even if he knew very well why not. 

Kakashi tilted his head and looked at Iruka. He didn’t say anything and let his silence do the talking. Unable to reign in his temper Iruka stuck his tongue out but managed to keep a snappish response to himself. 

Kakashi let out a little chuckle at the display of pique. 

“No wonder you get along with Naruto so well. You’re both terrifyingly similar,” Kakashi mused.

“How so?” Iruka asked, curious in spite of himself. 

“You’re both eager to make friends and ready to do something foolish without thinking.” 

“I’m-I’m,” Iruka sputtered. “I’m not impulsive. I-”

“So standing in front of an entire pod of angry sky whales was a carefully thought out act?” Kakashi cut in. 

Iruka let out a huffing noise of disagreement. Kakashi raised an eyebrow. He looked rather imperious, looking down his nose at Iruka while riding a dragon. Iruka jutted his chin out. 

“I just,” Iruka’s voice cracked. He cleared his throat. “I wanted to help.”

“Of course.”

Kakashi watched him in a calculating way. It made Iruka feel even more self-conscious than he had before. Iruka fussed with the laces on his shirt, tying it shut and tucking it in. Then made quick work of redoing his hair, making sure to tuck away the stray strands. 

“Let me take you back to your room,” Kakashi said. Iruka startled. He hesitated for a moment. Kakashi eyed him. “Unless of course, you want to take the stairs again.”

“That sounds nice,” Iruka said. “I’ll- I’ll accept your offer. It’s not as nice of a climb down as it is up.”

Kakashi nodded like it was the answer he expected. Kakashi swung back up onto Urushi. He offered a hand to Iruka. Iruka tried to be subtle about wiping his palms on his pants but he didn’t doubt that Kakashi noticed. Urushi stamped his feet restlessly, making Iruka drop rather into the saddle behind Kakashi. Which meant Iruka was pressed up against his back. Iruka squirmed back self-consciously. Kakashi shifted in the saddle to make sure they both had room to sit but it still left Iruka pressed to his back. Iruka tried to move back as much as he could but the saddle didn’t allow for much space between them.

“Are you OK?” Kakashi asked. 

“I’m fine,” Iruka said. 

Iruka held himself stiffly away from Kakashi’s body. Urushi pushed off and took to the air. Iruka felt his stomach bottom out. He had dreamed about it. The feeling of being in the air astride a dragon. In all his years in the mountain, he had never had the opportunity. None of the dragons would hold him. Iruka gripped the sides of the saddle until his knuckles turned white and his hands ached.

“Are you sure you’re, OK?” Kakashi asked. “You’re shaking.”

“I’m fine. I just-” Iruka tried to calm his breathing. He tilted his head back and dragged cool air into his lungs. Iruka gave himself a moment to let his stomach settle then opened his eyes again. They were still hovering above the cliff. 

“You’re not fine.” Kakashi tugged at Iruka’s hands until he let go of the saddle. “Hold on to me. You’ll feel more stable. Try to move with me as Urushi adjusts to the wind. You won’t fall. Not that it would matter if you did.”

“What does tha-” Iruka didn’t get to finish his question. Urushi gave a few harsh flaps of his wings and they were up in the air. Iruka instinctively grabbed at the only solid thing he was close to, Kakashi. He grabbed two handfuls of Kakashi’s shirt and held them in a death grip. The same strange dropping sensation filled his stomach but it was manageable now. Kakashi patted Iruka’s hand where it had a strangled grip in his shirt. Offering comfort was obviously not something that Kakashi was used to doing. And surprising. Especially as it was Iruka he was trying to comfort. It made Iruka feel brave. 

“Umm, Kakashi, can I ask you a question?” 

The man gave a careless shrug. He clicked his tongue and tugged on the reins, encouraging his dragon to fly to Iruka’s balcony. 

“Why are you seeking me out now? You’ve never really bothered with me before,” Iruka asked. Kakashi’s presence at the top of the mountain had surprised him. 

“It took me some time but I think I’ve figured you out now,” Kakashi said. 

“What do you mean?” Iruka asked. 

“You’re not a dragoon,” Kakashi said.

“What?”

Iruka felt like he had been struck in the chest. Like he had been hollowed out with a single sentence. He had known people thought it. They implied it. Iruka could see it in their eyes. And sometimes, when the loneliness ate at him, Iruka thought it to himself. But no one had ever said it out loud. At least not where Iruka could hear it. And never to his face. Well, not exactly to his face because Iruka was pressed against Kakashi’s back. 

“You’re not a dragoon,” Kakashi repeated. 

He cocked his head to the side as if he didn’t understand Iruka’s reaction. Iruka balled his hands into fists. He refused to cry. Even if Kakashi could feel him trembling, he wouldn’t cry. Kakashi covered Iruka’s hand with his own. Hurt and anger piled up in Iruka, so much so that he let go of Kakashi’s shirt and pushed Kakashi’s hand away from his own. 

“Iruka, you don’t know?” Kakashi twisted in the saddle. Iruka ducked his head so the other man couldn’t see his tears. “I thought you realized.” 

Kakashi sounded stunned. As if the idea had never occurred to Iruka. As if Iruka hung around the mountain for fun. As if Iruka hadn’t been to choosing after choosing, desperately looking for his own draconis. 

“Did you have to say it?” Iruka asked. His voice was small and weak. Iruka hated it. He dropped his hands from where they were and wrapped his arms around himself. 

“No. Wait. Iruka. Just wait. Let’s get to the balcony,” Kakashi said. 

“Let me down,” Iruka snapped.

“Let me explain,” Kakashi insisted. 

Iruka squired trying to get as much space between them as possible. 

“Iruka, stop squirming and listen.” 

Kakashi reached behind himself to grab at Iruka.

“Iruka, do you really not know?” Kakashi paused for a moment and looked to the sky whale pod above them. “You’re a sky rider.” 

“What?” 

This time Iruka felt winded for a completely different reason. He shook Kakashi’s hold off again. 

“That’s why the draconis won't choose you. They're scared of you. It's why you sleep perched high up the mountain, not below it.” Kakashi gestured in the direction of Iruka’s room. “You watch the world from above. I couldn’t understand it. Why were the draconis so afraid of you but the children loved you? It didn’t make sense. Why would a flight full of draconis be so unsettled by one man? You have a temper, Naruto has told me as much. But what could you do against a mountain? Against a flight? You’re dedicated and caring. You put the flight before yourself all the time. You work harder than anyone. You crave connections and friends. You want to belong. But the draconis can’t accept you. It’s because they’re _prey_ to you. You’re not a dragoon, you’re a sky rider. Now stop fighting me and hold on properly.”

Iruka opened his mouth but nothing came out. A sky rider. There hadn’t been a sky rider in a hundred years. It was impossible. Sky riders flew without dragons. They used skymagick to move. Skymagick was natural to them. It was like breathing. There were no incantations. No magic items or runes. They loved the sky and the sky held them high. It was that same magick that let the skywhales fly. In legends, the sky riders would travel with skywhale pods, riding them, living with them. Sky riders were human skywhales. They understood each other. They could communicate through the sky. They communicated _with_ the sky. 

Iruka had known the skywhale was giving birth. He had felt her terror. He had known that pain and fear had grounded her. The skywhales had listened to him. Trusted him. They sang to him.

“I smell of sky and of danger,” Iruka whispered. 

It was the first time he had ever said the Queen’s words to him out loud. He had tucked them away. Kept them close to his heart as proof that he belonged to the mountain. But that wasn’t true. He belonged to the sky. 

“What?” 

Iruka laughed. 

“You’re right,” Iruka said, his laughter a touch hysterical. It made sense. Everything made sense. Iruka pushed away from Kakashi. “I’m not a dragoon.”

“Iruka, wait.”

Kakashi grabbed at him, but it was no use, Iruka pushed away far enough he could roll backwards out of the saddle. It was surreal seeing Kakashi’s terrified face as and his gloved hands grasping for Iruka as he fell. Iruka twisted as he went so he could face the ground. See it rushing at him. Kakashi was screaming his name. Iruka barely hear it over the wind in his ears and the sky in his head. Everything in his chest was tight. He had forgotten to breathe. Iruka took a deep breath, the ground was coming. And it was coming fast. Iruka started to sing. It was pitchy and panicked and almost inaudible. He was going to die. Iruka screamed in terror, chasing the note that let the skywhale calf fly. 

Iruka could see the ground. There were people milling around. A group of drakes and their riders all looking up at him, their faces painted in horror. People started to scream but it was drowned out by singing. A cacophony of sky rang around him. The ground never came. Iruka floated. The drakes on the ground snarled and snapped at him. Iruka was too far away for them to reach. He was hovering in the air, the sky holding him up in a breezy hand. 

A song of challenge and smug superiority rang out, making Iruka rise. Wind and sky lifted him. Suddenly, the song gave way and Iruka dropped again, but not far. He landed with a thump on a hard blue-grey surface. Iruka panted on the sky whales back. The female had come to save him. She sang a teasing song at him. The calf had followed her, chirping and snorting puffs of air from its blowhole. Iruka had the distinct impression he was being chastised by an infant. 

“I know, I know,” Iruka said. He gave a halfhearted wave to the calf.

Jumping from the top of the mountain had not been the wisest thing he had ever done. And it made Kakashi’s point about his impulsive nature. Iruka sprawled himself out on the skywhale. The way she flew was comforting. The strange dropping sensations in his stomach never came. He didn’t feel afraid on her broad back even if he didn’t have a saddle. She made him feel grounded, even up in the air. The wind around them tasted like belonging and change. The female let out an irritated puffing noise from her blowhole as Kakashi and his dragon flew down next to them. At least they were polite enough to fly on the other side of the female. Placing her between them and the calf.

“You’re insane,” Kakashi said. He looked a little haggard. Urushi was snorting from exerting itself to catch up to Iruka’s fall. And likely in irritation at the skywhale’s proximity. “But I suppose you would have to be, to leap and expect the sky to hold you up.” 

They flew back up to Iruka’s balcony in silence. It took far longer to fly up than it had to fall. Iruka took a moment to feel nauseous at how far up he had leapt from. Kakashi was right. He was insane. He patted the female and jumped down to the balcony and sat down hard. She trilled at him and went to rejoin her pod. The calf made an annoyed huffing noise with his mouth in Kakashi’s direction as the dragoon followed them to the balcony.

“Behave,” Iruka scolded as he pulled his legs to his chest. The calf whined his discontent before taking off into the sky to begin a dance only he knew the steps to. 

Urushi landed on the balcony railing. Kakashi dismounted and walked over to sit next to him. He didn’t say anything and Iruka felt the weight of Kakashi’s discovery. He knew why he didn’t quite fit into the mountain. Why the draconis didn’t want anything to do with him except a few rare exceptions. It was exhilarating but also terrifying. Urushi huffed and took off to fly around, getting closer to the calf, and sniffing in its direction. The calf chirped and started to fly nonsensical loops around the dragon. He sang his happiness to Iruka and tried to tempt Urushi into playing chase. The pod above began to fly a little lower but didn’t get close enough to spook the dragon. 

Iruka let out a weak chuckle. Kakashi sat down next to Iruka. He was only an arm’s reach away. Iruka had dozens of daydreams with Kakashi playing a starring role. None of them had been close to the reality Iruka was experiencing. 

They sat side by side in silence watching the dragon and skywhale play for what felt like ages. Iruka’s mind spun and twisted on itself. Starting and stopping and turning. There was more logic to the calf’s movements than there were to Iruka’s thoughts.

“If-” Iruka began, “If I’m a sky rider-”

“You are,” Kakashi said. He said it with such certainty again that Iruka felt convinced again. Like he could leap from the mountain and not fall. Even if that hadn’t been what happened. It fit. It felt right. Even if Iruka wasn’t sure. Even if it was terrifying.

“What do I do?” Iruka said, his voice small. 

Kakashi shrugged. “Be a sky rider.”

“Where do I go?” 

“Go?” Kakashi asked. 

Iruka gestured to his room, the sky, the mountain. 

“Since I’m not a dragoon. Where do I go?”

“You think Tsunade is letting you go anywhere?” Kakashi sounded incredulous. “She will do everything she can to keep you attached to this mountain.”

Iruka let out a bitter laugh. He pressed his face into his knees to hide his tears. 

“Iruka, there hasn’t been a sky rider in a hundred years. The last one that we know of was her grandfather.”

Iruka tried to subtly wipe away his tears by rubbing his face on his pants. 

“Iruka, you live in his room.”

“His room?” Iruka’s head whipped up. Kakashi was watching him intently. Iruka licked his lips. He let out a breath. Some of Kakashi’s conclusions slotting into place. “That’s why the stairs are along the cliff face. He put them there for other people. He didn’t need them.”

“More than likely,” Kakashi agreed. 

“I think-” Iruka paused. “I think... I need to think.”

He looked to Kakashi. It was strange. For so long Iruka wanted someone, anyone to share his thoughts with. But now there were so many and they were so overwhelming, he didn’t even know how to share them. 

Kakashi nodded and moved to the railing. He let out a sharp whistle. The dragon let out a throaty trumpet in response and flew to the balcony. Urushi perched on the balcony. He rustled his wings, an impatient demand for Kakashi to mount up.

“Kakashi.”

He paused in his manoeuvring to get into the saddle. 

“Thank you,” Iruka said. “It’s-it’s a lot. For me. But. Thank you.” 

Kakashi nodded then mounted his dragon and flew away. 

Iruka stared after him for a few moments. Chewing his morning over in his mind. He laid back, sprawling out on the balcony with his arms spread wide. Iruka stared at the sky. If Kakashi was right. And he probably was. He wasn’t just an amazing dragoon and fighter, he was a genius. His brilliance was whispered about almost as much as the number of draconis he had. If Iruka was a sky rider. When Kakashi had said it, declared Iruka a sky rider, it had felt right. So right, in fact, that Iruka had thrown himself off the back of a dragon and into the sky without thought. The words had tasted like who he was. Filled up parts of Iruka that he had always assumed were empty because he was unchosen. It had never occurred to him that he as chasing the wrong bit of sky. 

But now he knew better now. He wasn’t a dragoon, he was a sky rider. He needed to be a sky rider. Which meant he needed to learn how to be one. He looked up to the sky to watch the calf flit around looping and singing and flying in nonsense patterns. He wasn’t sure exactly how it worked, but being a dragoon began with naming the draconis that chose you. It was an exchange. An acknowledgement of the responsibility of the chosen. It was a promise. And Iruka intended to keep his end of it. He might be wrong, but he didn’t see the harm in trying it out. Iruka stood up and cupped his hands to his mouth. 

“Yoake,” Iruka called. 

The calf sang long and loud in excitement before flying to him. Iruka laughed. He stroked the sky whale’s chin. 

“That’s your name. Yoake. For the start of new days.” 

Yoake chirped and wiggled, his singing pleased and proud. 

“I’m glad you seem to like it.”

Iruka kept stroking the sky whale’s chin. 

“I’m going to learn how to do this. How to be a sky rider,” Iruka vowed. “I’m going to learn the song of the sky.” 

The rest of Iruka’s life, his heartache and adventures would all unfold from that vow.

The End

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know. I know. That’s a cheap ending. The truth is, this story was just me playing around with a few fantasy concepts that I had rattling around in my brain. And well, there was the dragon prompt for Naruto Fantasy week. I was weak willed. I didn’t intend for it to have much (see also: ANY) plot and Iruka’s angst just sort of appeared as I was writing. I realized after I started that Iruka didn’t really fit into the place he was growing up in. He was a literal case of square peg, round hole. There was more Kakashi in this story than I had planned too. Because Iruka is thirsty and Kakashi is a snoop. I might revisit the story at some point but I have something else I want to try to put together first. 
> 
> Anyway, I hoped you liked this and thanks for reading until the end. (∩^o^)⊃━☆ﾟ.*･｡ﾟ
> 
> Yoake = dawn in Japanese


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